NC Cultural Resources Newsroom

The ninth annual Fantail Film Festival in Wilmington runs four Friday nights in May, and will feature movies on the big screen outside on the Battleship North Carolina’s deck (fantail), just the way her crew watched movies in the 1940s!  This year’s classic film selection celebrates the “Many Moods of Love.”  Dates are May 9, May 16, May 23, and May 30.  Films begin at 8:30 p.m., with a $1 admission fee. 

May 9 – “Shop Around the Corner,” 1940 – Ernst Lubitsch directs Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullivan in this incredibly charming comedy about two workers at loggerheads in a Budapest notion shop who slowly realize they are each other’s anonymous lonely hearts pen pals.

May 16 – “Notorious,” 1946 – This Alfred Hitchcock thriller weaves the story of Nazis hiding out in South America post World War II.  Ingrid Bergman is coerced by American agent Cary Grant to marry German spy Claude Rains in order to help Grant gain information. 

May 23 – “African Queen,” 1951 – John Huston directs this beloved film about hard living river runner Humphrey Bogart as he helps proper missionary Katharine Hepburn escape the Germans by taking her downriver in Africa during World War I.  Their adventures battling the Germans, the elements, and each other lead to romance.  Bogart won an Oscar for his role.

May 30 – “Bringing Up Baby,” 1938 – Cary Grant & Katharine Hepburn star in Howard Hawk’s screwball comedy about an absent minded uptight zoologist (Grant), a madcap heiress and socialite (Hepburn), and “Baby,” a pet leopard who  causes chaos wherever he goes.  After they make a shambles of Grant’s life, he gives into the irresponsible insanity.  One of the fastest, funniest comedies ever made.

Tickets are available at the door only.  Soft drinks and popcorn will be available; $1 for a drink and $1 for a bag of popcorn.  Additional snacks and drinks are also available in the Canteen.  In case of rain, the films will be shown in the Visitor Center auditorium. For information, go to www.battleshipnc.com, or call (910) 251-5797 ext. 2049.